Migranto

South African Diaspora

1M South Africans live abroad — the #69 largest diaspora in the world

#69 worldwide#15 in Africa

Where emigrants go

The top 3 countries receive 62% of all emigrants

Largest destination
United Kingdom

245.4K

24.4% of all emigrants

2Australia213.4K21.2%
3USA↑25%161.5K16.1%
4New Zealand↑23%102K10.1%
5Canada52.6K5.2%
6Netherlands↑53%31K3.1%
7Mozambique21K2.1%
8Zimbabwe20.3K2.0%

↑↓ — change vs 2020

CountryEmigrants
United Kingdom245446
Australia213447
USA161507
New Zealand101970
Canada52600
Netherlands31024
Mozambique21022
Zimbabwe20346
Ireland18857
Israel14535
Portugal14232
Eswatini12870
Namibia9422
Greece7484
Angola6487
Italy6245
Botswana6052
Lesotho5964
Malawi5907
Belgium5259
Cyprus5240
China5129
Zambia5022
Austria3710
India3709
Denmark2999
Brazil1941
Norway1936
Japan1415
Finland1203
Guinea1161
Malta909
Isle of Man833
Poland783
Luxembourg761
Libya729
Mali725
Hungary712
Tanzania687
Mauritius632
Bulgaria461
Chile455
Argentina441
Peru406
Mexico355
Egypt304
Bermuda293
Sri Lanka265
Seychelles262
Croatia180
Slovakia167
Iceland157
Bahamas116
Eritrea95
Slovenia94
Kenya91
Saint Helena86
Panama84
Costa Rica81
Sierra Leone72
Venezuela63
Estonia60
Central African Republic57
Antigua and Barbuda47
Cayman Islands45
Liechtenstein32
Faroe Islands26
Lithuania26
Latvia21
Bolivia20
Gabon12
Dominican Republic11
Saint Lucia3

By destination region

Europe is the leading destination region at 34%

Europe34.2%

343.6K

Oceania31.4%

315.4K

North America21.3%

214.4K

Africa9.7%

98K

Middle East2.0%

19.8K

Asia1.0%

10.5K

Latin America0.4%

4.1K

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Interesting facts

Notable statistics about emigration from South Africa.

Netherlands is the fastest-growing major destination

Emigration to the Netherlands has increased by 127% since 2015, rising from 13.7K to 31K in 9 years.

The share of emigrants going to Africa has declined since 1990

The share of emigrants going to Africa has shifted from 24.6% to 9.7% since 1990.

How emigration changed over time

Total emigrant population by year

YearEmigrants
1990295392
1995357986
2000494645
2005613772
2010704402
2015782819
2020898203
20241005800

Top destinations over time

Emigration to the 5 largest destination countries

United Kingdom Australia USA New Zealand Canada
YearUnited KingdomAustraliaUSANew ZealandCanada
1990631644616736551737523897
19959238659022351541086328514
200013340180607689042407233976
2005164846114035948373956037929
2010198360156200895424966042621
20152164401774821028566254147223
20202327011999941295458262550957
202424544621344716150710197052600

Fastest-changing destinations

How emigration to each country has changed since the selected year

Malta909+74%
Netherlands31K+53%
Panama84+53%
Iceland157+51%
Ireland18.9K+44%
Peru406+39%
Bulgaria461+38%
Zambia5K+33%

South Africa as an emigration source

Share of immigrants in each country who originate from South Africa

New Zealand7%102K
Zimbabwe7%20.3K
Mozambique6%21K
United Kingdom3%245.4K
Australia3%213.4K
Canada1%52.6K
Netherlands1%31K

Data source: International Migrant Stock 2024 (UN DESA, Population Division)

Frequently asked questions

Where do South Africans move to?

Most South Africans have moved to United Kingdom, Australia and USA — these three countries account for about 62% of all South Africans living abroad.

How many South Africans live abroad?

Around 1M South Africans live abroad, making it the #69-largest emigrant population in the world.

What share of the population of South Africa lives abroad?

About 2% of the population of South Africa lives abroad — that's 1M out of a total population of 64M.

How has emigration from South Africa changed over the past decade?

Over the past decade, the emigrant population from South Africa has grown from 782.8K to 1M people, a growth of about 28%.

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